Posted
on: www.dailyguideghana.com
By
William Yaw Owusu
Tuesday,
August 08, 2017
Preliminary investigations into the alleged abuse of
power and corruption scandal that have rocked the Electoral Commission (EC) have
commenced, DAILY GUIDE has reliably been informed.
The Chief Justice has reportedly written officially
to the embattled Chairperson of the EC, Charlotte Osei, to respond to the
damning allegations that could lead to her impeachment.
DAILY
GUIDE learnt that the letter from the Office of the Chief
Justice was delivered last Friday. The two other commissioners, Amadu Sulley
and Georgina Opoku-Amankwa, have equally been written to, to react to the petitions
against them, seeking their removal from office.
Legal
Impediment
However, before the formal preliminary investigation
commences, a private citizen, Ayamga Yakubu Akoglo, has filed a writ at the
Supreme Court, seeking to prevent the Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, from going
ahead to investigate the EC boss.
The plaintiff wants the suit, which also cites the Attorney
General, to declare the action being initiated against the EC boss by the
Judicial Council as unconstitutional, void and of no effect.
He is claiming that the issues raised in the
petition against Mrs Charlotte Osei had nothing to do with her core functions
as prescribed under Article 45 of the 1992 Constitution and as a result, did
not warrant her removal per Article 46 (1) of the Constitution, describing the
petition as ‘defective.’
He is averring that the petitioners’ allegation of
financial or procurement impropriety against the EC boss should not constitute
the grounds for impeachment proceedings under Article 46 (1) since financial
and procurement functions are not part of the Chairperson’s core duties.
Double
Petition
Two of Ms Charlotte Osei’s deputies - Amadu Sulley, in-charge of Operations and Georgina
Opoku-Amankwa, for Corporate Services - who are also facing similar probe after
a second petition was sent to the president - have also been written to for
their respective responses.
As if that was not enough, the Economic and
Organized Crime Office (EOCO) has reportedly invited Ms. Osei to respond to the
financial malfeasance allegation leveled against her by the yet-to-be
identified petitioners who want her impeached.
Legal experts say that if a prima facie case is
established against any of the commissioners during the preliminary
investigation, the Chief Justice per the rules, will then establish a committee
to fully investigate the issues and a report submitted to the president, who
forwarded the petition to the CJ for action.
Initial
Petition
The whole action against the EC gurus was triggered
by a petition sent to the presidency by Lawyer Maxwell Opoku-Agyemang who was
acting on behalf of some unnamed staff of the commission who are seeking to
trigger impeachment proceedings against Mrs. Charlotte Osei.
A litany of allegations have been leveled against
Mrs. Osei, including spending GH¢3.9 million to partition an office, receipt of
a Toyota Land Cruiser from the previous government, spending about $14 million
when the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) had authorized her to use only $7.5
million, as well as attending Cabinet meetings under President John Mahama’
administration, among other things.
Fight
Back
As a result, EC boss, through her lawyers - Sory@Law
- who are also the commission’s external solicitors, hit back at her accusers,
insisting that she had not been corrupt or abused her office and rather accused
her two deputies of deliberately scheming to frustrate her stay in office.
The Chairperson in her initial response, openly
accused Mrs. Opoku-Amankwaa of signing contracts worth over $40 million without
her knowledge and authorization between May and September 2015.
Illegal
Transfer
She also turned her attention to Amadu Sulley and
said apart from transferring votes illegally in the run-up to the 2016 general
election, he (Sulley) also pocketed huge amounts of cash from some political
parties.
“The Deputy Chairperson Operations collected funds
above GH¢6m in cash from some political parties for the organization of party
primaries without recourse to the structures of the Commission, and without the
involvement of the finance department of the Commission,” she said.
The fight became nastier when other unknown persons
who appeared to be on the side of Mrs. Osei sent a counter petition to the president
to investigate her two deputies also for corruption and abuse of office.
Accusations and counter accusations have since
ensued between the EC boss on one hand and her two deputies on the other. They are
fighting back strongly, trying to parry the Chairperson’s allegations.
Corporate
Services
Mrs. Opoku-Amankwaa for instance, said in a 25-point
response to the EC Chairperson’s statement that “The Chairperson’s claim that
there was a deliberate strategy to frustrate her work and tenure is palpably
false and a figment of her own imagination.”
The deputy Commissioner appeared to suggest that it
was rather Mrs. Osei who was the problem at the commission and not her or Amadu
Sulley.
“Her managerial deficiencies, coupled with her poor
human relations and lack of appreciation for team work, are too manifest to
escape public judgement,” she said.
She also described as “frivolous, useless,
fabrications and a figment” of Mrs. Charlotte Osei’s imagination, the
allegations leveled against her and asked that they be treated with contempt.
Operations
Director
Amadu Sulley did not take issues lightly when he was
accused of pocketing GH¢6 million from the parties.
“I don’t understand the motive of the Chair to come
out now to make this unfortunate allegation against me and the Deputy Chair,
Finance/Administration.”
He also accused Mrs. Osei of
sidelining him in the daily operations at the Commission.
He said he was taking legal advice and concluded
with a sarcastic statement that “if you tell one lie you need a thousand lies
to cover!”
The EC boss has since sued Lawyer Opoku-Agyemang for
defamation and said she was moving to clear her name.
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